Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep 4;17(1):104.
doi: 10.1186/s13034-023-00652-5.

Longitudinal Covid-19 effects on child mental health: vulnerability and age dependent trajectories

Linda Larsen  1 , Stefan Kilian Schauber  2 , Tonje Holt  3 , Maren Sand Helland  3
Affiliations

Longitudinal Covid-19 effects on child mental health: vulnerability and age dependent trajectories

Linda Larsen et al. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. .

Abstract

Background: Few longitudinal studies have investigated the extended long-term impact of the Covid-19 pandemic for children's and adolescents' mental health, and a lack of uniform findings suggest heterogeneity in the impact of the pandemic.

Methods: This study investigated child and adolescent mental health symptoms across four occasions (pre-pandemic, initial lockdown, second lockdown, and society post reopening) using data from the Dynamics of Family Conflict study. Child and adolescent depressive vulnerability, age, and sex were explored as trajectory moderators. Children and adolescents (N = 381, Mage = 13.65, SD = 1.74) self-reported their anxiety, depression, and externalizing symptoms. Mixed effects analyses were performed to investigate trajectories across measurement occasions and interaction terms between occasion and moderator variables were included to better understand the heterogeneity in the impact of the pandemic.

Results: Children and adolescents reported increases in anxiety symptoms at the second lockdown (t(523) = -3.66, p < .01) and when society had reopened (t(522) = -4.90, p < .001). An increase in depression symptoms was seen when society had reopened relative to the three previous measurement occasions (ps < 0.01). Depressive vulnerability moderated the trajectory for anxiety symptoms (F(3,498) = 3.05, p = .028), while age moderated the trajectory for depression symptoms (F(3,532) = 2.97, p = .031).

Conclusion: The delayed and negative impact on children's and adolescents' mental health underscores the need for continued monitoring, and implementation of support systems to help and mitigate further deterioration.

Keywords: Anxiety and depression; Children and adolescents; Covid-19; Externalizing difficulties; Longitudinal study; Vulnerability.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Timeline for the Data Collection Waves (W) in the FAM-C Study
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Trajectories for Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression across Baseline (pre-pandemic), Occasion 1 (first major lockdown), Occasion 2 (second lockdown) and Occasion 3 (society reopening)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Interaction Effects between Occasion and Child Characteristics across Baseline (pre-pandemic), Occasion 1 (first major lockdown), Occasion 2 (second lockdown) and Occasion 3 (society reopening)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. WHO director-general’s opening remark at the media briefing on COVID-19., (2020).
    1. Ludwig-Walz H, Dannheim I, Pfadenhauer LM, Fegert JM, Bujard M. Increase of depression among children and adolescents after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2022;16:109. doi: 10.1186/s13034-022-00546-y. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Beames JR, Li SH, Newby JM, Maston K, Christensen H, Werner-Seidler A. The upside: coping and psychological resilience in australian adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2021;15(1):77. doi: 10.1186/s13034-021-00432-z. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bruining H, Bartels M, Polderman TJC, Popma A. COVID-19 and child and adolescent psychiatry: an unexpected blessing for part of our population? Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2020(30):1139–40. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bouter DC, Zarchev M, de Neve-Enthoven NGM, Ravensbergen SJ, Kamperman AM, Hoogendijk WJG et al. A longitudinal study of mental health in at-risk adolescents before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2023(32):1109–17. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources